The lawsuit reads, “These transmissions have a common defect…Drivers have reported that the shift is sometimes so violent, they feel as though they have been hit by another vehicle.” It also mentions the case of an owner whose vehicle shifted from reverse to drive harshly enough that it nearly lurched through his garage door.

The transmission problems allegedly occur within the transmissions or torque converters that cause friction on the surfaces and failures of the gears and hydraulic systems.This allegedly causes metal shavings to circulate through the 8L90 and 8L45 transmissions, damaging the torque converters and transmissions. One NHTSA complaint does cite a failed torque converter after 16,000 miles in a GMC Canyon.

General Motors has allegedly known about the 8L90 and 8L45 transmission problems since 2015 when the automaker started issuing technical service bulletins (TSBs) and other bulletins to dealerships. According to the plaintiffs, none of the repairs have truly fixed the transmission problems and the automaker continues to conceal the alleged defects from customers.